Method and apparatus for optionally running mobile applications locally or virtually

ABSTRACT

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a system and method, for determining power requirements according to a data connection with a remote server that provides services to support execution of a remote application that corresponds to a local application that executes on the mobile device. The power requirements are compared to a remaining charge of a battery of the mobile device to obtain a comparison, and the remote application, in lieu of the local application that executes on the mobile device according to the comparison. Other embodiments are disclosed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/434,723 filed Feb. 16, 2017. All sections of the aforementionedapplication(s) and patent(s) are incorporated herein by reference intheir entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The subject disclosure relates to mobile computing, and moreparticularly to a method and apparatus for optionally running mobileapplications locally or remotely.

BACKGROUND

Mobile device memory limitations constrain either a number or a size ofapplications (or apps) that can occupy the memory of the mobile device.Hence, such memory limitations restrict the number and size of apps thatcan simultaneously execute on the mobile device. Although mobile devicememory has generally expanded greatly in recent years, so has the sizeof apps. Furthermore, larger mobile device memories require more power,which in turn increases the discharge rate of the mobile device battery.Battery depletion remains a primary key performance point of any mobiledevice. Furthermore, larger memories are more expensive, which is also akey factor in the development of a mobile device.

Therefore, there is a need to effectively manage mobile device memory,especially for mobile operating systems that allow for multiple,simultaneous running apps.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are notnecessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a system for optionallyrunning mobile applications locally or virtually;

FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method used in portionsof the system described in FIG. 1 of an illustrative embodiment of amobile device and server network;

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method used in portionsof the method described in FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4-5 depict illustrative embodiments of communication systems thatprovide media services to a mobile device client;

FIG. 6 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a web portal forinteracting with the communication systems for a mobile device;

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a mobile communicationdevice; and

FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the form of acomputer system within which a set of instructions, when executed, maycause the machine to perform any one or more of the methods describedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The subject disclosure describes, among other things, illustrativeembodiments for managing the use of mobile device memory. Otherembodiments are described in the subject disclosure.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include a device,comprising: a processor; and a memory that stores executableinstructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitateperformance of operations, comprising: retrieving metadata for a remoteapp corresponding to a local app, wherein processing for the remote appexecutes at least in part on a remote server communicatively coupled toa mobile device via a data connection, wherein the metadata includesmemory requirements for a size of program code and a size of programdata, anticipated utilization for a mobile processor of the mobiledevice and a rate of data transmission over the data connection;determining an operating condition of the mobile device, wherein theoperating condition includes available memory of the mobile device,available utilization of the mobile processor, a percentage of batterycharge of the mobile device; determining a state of the data connectionbetween the mobile device and the remote server, wherein the state ofthe data connection includes signal strength, latency and error rate;calculating an expected rate of battery discharge based the metadata andthe state of the data connection; and selecting the local app or theremote app for execution based on the state of the data connection, theoperating condition and the expected rate of battery discharge.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include a machine-readablestorage medium, comprising executable instructions that, when executedby a processor of a machine comprising memory, facilitate performance ofoperations, comprising: receiving a request to execute a localapplication; determining whether a remote application corresponding tothe local application is available; responsive to a remote applicationbeing available, determining whether a data connection with a remoteserver is present; responsive to a data connection being present,determining whether latency of the data connection exceeds a maximumlatency value for the remote application; responsive to the latencybeing less than the maximum latency value, determining whether memoryrequirements for the remote application exceeds an amount of free memoryin the machine; responsive to the memory requirements being less thanthe amount of free memory, determining whether processing requirementsfor the remote application exceeds a maximum available utilizationvalue; and responsive to the processing requirements being less than themaximum available utilization value, executing the remote application.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include a method,comprising: retrieving, by a processor of a mobile device, metadata fora remote application that executes on the mobile device; determiningpower requirements from the metadata for a data connection with a remoteserver that provides services to support execution of the remoteapplication; calculating if the power requirements for the dataconnection exceeds a remaining charge of a battery of the mobile device;and executing the remote application responsive to the powerrequirements for the data connection being less than the remainingcharge of the battery.

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a system 100 for optionallyrunning mobile applications locally or virtually. As shown in FIG. 1,the system 100 comprises a remote server 130, a network 132, and adevice 116 communicatively coupled to the network 132. Device 116 mayinclude a remote application (or app) 166 and/or a local app 176. Remoteserver 130 includes program code and/or data 136 that supports executionof the remote app 166 on device 116. Local app 176 executes on device116 without needing computational resources from remote server 130. Inan embodiment, remote server 130 provides services through network 132to support execution of the remote app 166. In an embodiment, theservices may follow a client/server paradigm, where program code 136executes on server 130 and provides a majority of processing cyclesand/or data storage, whereas remote app 166 is a thin client executingon device 116 that has smaller processing and memory requirements thanlocal app 176. In an embodiment, a determination is made whether to runthe local app 176 or alternatively to run the remote app 166 on device116.

In an embodiment, code in firmware of device 116 makes the determinationof which app to run. The firmware code may dynamically optimize memorymanagement on device 116 by running highest priority apps locally andpushing others out for execution on remote server 130 when device 116 iscommunicatively coupled with remote server 130, when computational ormemory resources on device 116 are constrained, and when latencyrequirements of a data connection with remote server 130 can be met. Inan embodiment, device 116 is a mobile device having limited processorpower and limited memory that is wirelessly connected to the network132. In an alternative embodiment, device 116 is not a mobile device,but has limited processor power and memory, but may also have a highbandwidth and low latency connection to the network 132.

FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method 200 used inportions of the system 100 described in FIG. 1 of an illustrativeembodiment of a mobile device utilizing network services. As shown inFIG. 2, method 200 begins at step 202, where a device receives a requestfor launching an app. In a mobile context, the request is generated bymerely selecting an app on a user interface of the device, typically bytouching an icon on a touch screen, which lodges the request with anoperating system of the device. The device then begins a process todetermine whether to run a local version of the app, or a remote versionof the app.

In an embodiment, each application has metadata describing resourcerequirements, and a degree of interaction between the device and theapplication, which acts as a loose proxy for RF energy expenditure. Forexample, if an application requires very little information to run acomplex routine, the app would have a small degree of interaction. Thistype of processing task would be a prime candidate for running theremote app on the device. The operating system could inspect availableresources, and then look at what the app is going to require. Adetermination is made whether there is a remote app available as well asestimating how much RF energy will be expended interacting with theremote app via a wireless connection. Running apps could optionallyinvolve thin or thick applications where thin applications have someperformance or functional limitations. The option to run a thin or thickapplication, when to run it, and whether to run it locally versusremotely is based on a few considerations set forth in more detailbelow.

The process continues to step 204, where the device measures the chargeof the battery and generates a score for the remaining battery life ofthe device and the load requirements for executing a remote app. Theload requirements are estimated by the length of time that the app willneed to perform the task, among other things.

The process continues to step 206, where the device generates a scorefor the latency of the network data connection versus the latencyrequirement of the remote app. In an embodiment, the actual latency ofthe network connection can be compared to the requirements of a remoteapp as part of the decision process for running a local app or a remoteapp. For example, if the app is a computer game that has very slowinteraction with the user interface, such as may be the case for atrivia game or a crossword puzzle, then the remote app may be a goodchoice as the latency impact would be unnoticeable since the amount ofdata interchanged between the device and the remote server would be low.

In step 208, the device generates a score for a current processor loadon the device versus an expected processor load for running the remoteapp on the device. In an embodiment, the score could be the differencebetween available utilization of the device's processor and the expectedutilization of the device's processor to execute the remote app. Theexpected utilization could be defined in the metadata for the remoteapp, and might also depend upon the computational horsepower of thedevice's processor. In another embodiment, the score could merely bebased on the available utilization of the device's processor, todetermine whether the processor has becoming constrained.

In step 210, the device generates a score for available free memory onthe device versus expected memory requirements for running the remoteapp on the device. In an embodiment, the score could be based on theavailable free memory left in the device, to determine whether thedevice is running low on free memory. Both data memory and program codememory could be factored into the score. In another embodiment, thescore could be the difference between available memory in the device andthe expected amount of memory needed to execute the remote app. Theexpected memory could be defined in the metadata for the remote app.

In step 212, the device generates a score for the signal strength of thedata connection versus interactivity requirements for the remote app.For example, if the device is connected to a very nearby Wi-Ficonnection having a very strong signal strength, then heavy datainteraction could easily be supported. This score can reflect therelative effect of signal strength versus the data interactivity needsof the remote app.

In step 220, a determination is made whether to execute the remote appor the local app. In aggregation, the scores amount to a scoringalgorithm that enables the device to make a decision whether to run thelocal app or the remote app, and optionally whether to run a thin orthick version of the remote app. Each application has metadatadescribing the resource requirements, and the degree of interactionbetween the device and the application as a loose proxy for RF energyexpenditure. A decision has to be made as to whether to use RF power(battery drain) to launch the remote app and then send a functionalrequest to that app. If the device has plenty of resources available, itmakes sense to launch the local app and not expend RF energy.Alternatively, if local resources are highly constrained, theapplication could be launched in the cloud and the device would thenhave to interact with that application, thereby expending RF energy. Forexample, if an application requires very little information to run acomplex routine, this would be a prime candidate for running a remoteapp, so that the processing cycles needed to implement the complexroutine can be performed on the remote server. Additionally, the type ofwireless connection comes into play. A strong Wi-Fi connection impliesthe device can communicate wirelessly with very low power. In contrast,a mobile network connection at very low signal strength implies that amobile device must transmit a lot of power to communicate with theremote server that supplies services to enable execution of the remoteapp.

If the scoring algorithm determines that the remote app should be run,then the process proceeds to step 230 where the device checks to seewhether there is a network connection to the remote server. If thedevice has no connection to the remote server, then the process proceedsto step 232. If there is a network connection, then the process proceedsto step 235.

In step 232, there is no option to run a remote app, though the optionto delay the running of it is reasonable. If the remote app merelyupdates software on the device, chances are it can be delayed for days,as set forth in the metadata identifying the criticality for running ata specific time and by how much the run can be delayed. Once the delayis over, the process continues at step 230. Alternatively, if no networkconnection is found, rather than delay again, the process may proceed tostep 240.

In step 235, the remote app is loaded into the memory of the device andexecuted by the device, thereby establishing communications with theremote server to obtain the necessary services to run the remote app.

Alternatively, in step 240, the local app is loaded into the memory ofthe device and executed by the device.

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method used in portionsof the method described in FIG. 2. In particular, FIG. 3 illustrates adecision making process to determine whether to execute a remote app ora local app. As shown in FIG. 3, the process begins with step 310 wherethe device checks to see if a network connection is available. In anembodiment, the device might be a mobile device and the check mightentail whether a wireless connection is available. If a networkconnection is available, then the process continues at step 320. If nonetwork connection is available, then the process ends at step 315,where the decision is reached to run the local app.

In step 320, the device checks to see whether the latency of the networkconnection is better than a threshold value. The threshold value can beprovided by the metadata associated with the remote app. The latency canbe checked by sending a ping packet to the remote server, receiving anacknowledgement packet, and measuring the round trip time betweensending the ping and receiving the acknowledgement. If the latency isbetter than the threshold value, then the process continues at step 330.If the latency is worse than the threshold value, then the process endsat step 315, where the decision is reached to run the local app.

In step 330, the device checks to see whether processing power andmemory are sufficient. The device can compare available CPU cycles(i.e., remaining utilization) to a threshold value provided by themetadata associated with the remote app. For the memory, the device cancompare free memory to another threshold value provided by the metadataassociated with the remote app. In one embodiment, if there issufficient processing power and memory, then then the process ends atstep 315, where the decision is reached to run the local app. Otherwise,the process continues at step 340. In another embodiment, if there issufficient processing power and free memory to load and execute theremote app, then the process continues at step 340.

In step 340, the device checks the signal strength of a wireless networkconnection between the device and the network. If the signal strength isweak, then the power required to send data to the remote server will begreater. A comparison is made between the expected power requirement,based on the signal strength, and the amount of battery charge remainingfor the device. In an embodiment, the metadata for the remote app cansupply a factor to convert signal strength to an expected powerrequirement. If the expected power requirement is within the remainingbattery capacity, then the process ends at step 345, where the decisionis reached to run the remote app. On the other hand, if the expectedpower requirement exceeds the remaining battery capacity, then theprocess ends at step 315, where the decision is reached to run the localapp.

While for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the respectiveprocesses are shown and described as a series of blocks in FIGS. 2-3, itis to be understood and appreciated that the claimed subject matter isnot limited by the order of the blocks, as some blocks may occur indifferent orders and/or concurrently with other blocks from what isdepicted and described herein. Moreover, not all illustrated blocks maybe required to implement the methods described herein.

FIG. 4 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a first communicationsystem 400 for delivering media content. The communication system 400can represent an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) media system.Communication system 400 can be overlaid or operably coupled with theremote server of FIG. 1 as another representative embodiment ofcommunication system 400. For instance, one or more devices illustratedin the communication system 400 of FIG. 4 comprising a processor and amemory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by theprocessor, can facilitate performance of operations, comprising:retrieving metadata for a remote app corresponding to a local app,wherein processing for the remote app executes at least in part on aremote server communicatively coupled to a mobile device via a dataconnection, wherein the metadata includes memory requirements for a sizeof program code and a size of program data, anticipated utilization fora mobile processor of the mobile device and a rate of data transmissionover the data connection; determining an operating condition of themobile device, wherein the operating condition includes available memoryof the mobile device, available utilization of the mobile processor, apercentage of battery charge of the mobile device; determining a stateof the data connection between the mobile device and the remote server,wherein the state of the data connection includes signal strength,latency and error rate; calculating an expected rate of batterydischarge based the metadata and the state of the data connection; andselecting the local app or the remote app for execution based on thestate of the data connection, the operating condition and the expectedrate of battery discharge.

The IPTV media system can include a super head-end office (SHO) 410 withat least one super headend office server (SHS) 411 which receives mediacontent from satellite and/or terrestrial communication systems. In thepresent context, media content can represent, for example, audiocontent, moving image content such as 2D or 3D videos, video games,virtual reality content, still image content, and combinations thereof.The SHS server 411 can forward packets associated with the media contentto one or more video head-end servers (VHS) 414 via a network of videohead-end offices (VHO) 412 according to a multicast communicationprotocol.

The VHS 414 can distribute multimedia broadcast content via an accessnetwork 418 to commercial and/or residential buildings 402 housing agateway 404 (such as a residential or commercial gateway). The accessnetwork 418 can represent a group of digital subscriber line accessmultiplexers (DSLAMs) located in a central office or a service areainterface that provide broadband services over fiber optical links orcopper twisted pairs 419 to buildings 402. The gateway 404 can usecommunication technology to distribute broadcast signals to mediaprocessors 406 such as Set-Top Boxes (STBs) which in turn presentbroadcast channels to media devices 408 such as computers or televisionsets managed in some instances by a media controller 407 (such as aninfrared or RF remote controller).

The gateway 404, the media processors 406, and media devices 408 canutilize tethered communication technologies (such as coaxial, powerlineor phone line wiring) or can operate over a wireless access protocolsuch as Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), Bluetooth®, ZigBee®, or other presentor next generation local or personal area wireless network technologies.By way of these interfaces, unicast communications can also be invokedbetween the media processors 406 and subsystems of the IPTV media systemfor services such as video-on-demand (VoD), browsing an electronicprogramming guide (EPG), or other infrastructure services.

A satellite broadcast television system 429 can be used in the mediasystem of FIG. 4. The satellite broadcast television system can beoverlaid, operably coupled with, or replace the IPTV system as anotherrepresentative embodiment of communication system 400. In thisembodiment, signals transmitted by a satellite 415 that include mediacontent can be received by a satellite dish receiver 431 coupled to thebuilding 402. Modulated signals received by the satellite dish receiver431 can be transferred to the media processors 406 for demodulating,decoding, encoding, and/or distributing broadcast channels to the mediadevices 408. The media processors 406 can be equipped with a broadbandport to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) network 432 to enableinteractive services such as VoD and EPG as described above.

In yet another embodiment, an analog or digital cable broadcastdistribution system such as cable TV system 433 can be overlaid,operably coupled with, or replace the IPTV system and/or the satelliteTV system as another representative embodiment of communication system400. In this embodiment, the cable TV system 433 can also provideInternet, telephony, and interactive media services. System 400 enablesvarious types of interactive television and/or services including IPTV,cable and/or satellite.

The subject disclosure can apply to other present or next generationover-the-air and/or landline media content services system.

Some of the network elements of the IPTV media system can be coupled toone or more computing devices 430, a portion of which can operate as aweb server for providing web portal services over the ISP network 432 towireline media devices 408 or wireless communication devices 416. Thecomputing device 430 can provide copies of applications, such as theremote app 166 or local app 176 of FIG. 1. The computing devices 430 cansupply other resources needed to support execution of the remote app 166of FIG. 1, such as processing cycles and/or data storage.

Communication system 400 can also provide for all or a portion of thecomputing devices 430 to function as a remote server (herein referred toas server 430). The server 430 can use computing and communicationtechnology to perform function 462, which can include among otherthings, the techniques described by method 200 of FIG. 2 or method 300of FIG. 3. For instance, function 462 of server 430 can be similar tothe functions described for remote server 130 of FIG. 1 in accordancewith methods 200 and 300. In addition, the computing devices 430 cansupply metadata for the remote app 166 or local app 176 of FIG. 1.Finally, the wireless communication devices 416 can be provisioned withsoftware functions 466, to utilize the services of server 430. Forinstance, functions 466 of wireless communication devices 416 can besimilar to the functions described for the device 416 of FIG. 1 inaccordance with methods 200 and 300.

Multiple forms of media services can be offered to media devices overlandline technologies such as those described above. Additionally, mediaservices can be offered to media devices by way of a wireless accessbase station 417 operating according to common wireless access protocolssuch as Global System for Mobile or GSM, Code Division Multiple Accessor CDMA, Time Division Multiple Access or TDMA, Universal MobileTelecommunications or UMTS, World interoperability for Microwave orWiMAX, Software Defined Radio or SDR, Long Term Evolution or LTE, and soon. Other present and next generation wide area wireless access networktechnologies can be used in one or more embodiments of the subjectdisclosure.

FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication system 500employing an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network architecture tofacilitate the combined services of circuit-switched and packet-switchedsystems. Communication system 500 can be overlaid or operably coupledwith system 100 of FIG. 1 and communication system 400 as anotherrepresentative embodiment of communication system 400. For example,devices in system 500 may assist with performance of a method,comprising: retrieving, by a processor of a mobile device, metadata fora remote application that executes on the mobile device; determiningpower requirements from the metadata for a data connection with a remoteserver that provides services to support execution of the remoteapplication; calculating if the power requirements for the dataconnection exceeds a remaining charge of a battery of the mobile device;and executing the remote application responsive to the powerrequirements for the data connection being less than the remainingcharge of the battery.

Communication system 500 can comprise a Home Subscriber Server (HSS)540, a tElephone NUmber Mapping (ENUM) server 530, and other networkelements of an IMS network 550. The IMS network 550 can establishcommunications between IMS-compliant communication devices (CDs) 501,502, Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) CDs 503, 505, andcombinations thereof by way of a Media Gateway Control Function (MGCF)520 coupled to a PSTN network 560. The MGCF 520 need not be used when acommunication session involves IMS CD to IMS CD communications. Acommunication session involving at least one PSTN CD may utilize theMGCF 520.

IMS CDs 501, 502 can register with the IMS network 550 by contacting aProxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF) which communicates with aninterrogating CSCF (I-CSCF), which in turn, communicates with a ServingCSCF (S-CSCF) to register the CDs with the HSS 540. To initiate acommunication session between CDs, an originating IMS CD 501 can submita Session Initiation Protocol (SIP INVITE) message to an originatingP-CSCF 504 which communicates with a corresponding originating S-CSCF506. The originating S-CSCF 506 can submit the SIP INVITE message to oneor more application servers (ASs) 517 that can provide a variety ofservices to IMS subscribers.

For example, the application servers 517 can be used to performoriginating call feature treatment functions on the calling party numberreceived by the originating S-CSCF 506 in the SIP INVITE message.Originating treatment functions can include determining whether thecalling party number has international calling services, call IDblocking, calling name blocking, 7-digit dialing, and/or is requestingspecial telephony features (e.g., *72 forward calls, *73 cancel callforwarding, *67 for caller ID blocking, and so on). Based on initialfilter criteria (iFCs) in a subscriber profile associated with a CD, oneor more application servers may be invoked to provide various calloriginating feature services.

Additionally, the originating S-CSCF 506 can submit queries to the ENUMsystem 530 to translate an E.164 telephone number in the SIP INVITEmessage to a SIP Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) if the terminatingcommunication device is IMS-compliant. The SIP URI can be used by anInterrogating CSCF (I-CSCF) 507 to submit a query to the HSS 540 toidentify a terminating S-CSCF 514 associated with a terminating IMS CDsuch as reference 502. Once identified, the I-CSCF 507 can submit theSIP INVITE message to the terminating S-CSCF 514. The terminating S-CSCF514 can then identify a terminating P-CSCF 516 associated with theterminating CD 502. The P-CSCF 516 may then signal the CD 502 toestablish Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) communication services,thereby enabling the calling and called parties to engage in voiceand/or data communications. Based on the iFCs in the subscriber profile,one or more application servers may be invoked to provide various callterminating feature services, such as call forwarding, do not disturb,music tones, simultaneous ringing, sequential ringing, etc.

In some instances the aforementioned communication process issymmetrical. Accordingly, the terms “originating” and “terminating” inFIG. 5 may be interchangeable. It is further noted that communicationsystem 500 can be adapted to support video conferencing. In addition,communication system 500 can be adapted to provide the IMS CDs 501, 502with the multimedia and Internet services of communication system 400 ofFIG. 4.

If the terminating communication device is instead a PSTN CD such as CD503 or CD 505 (in instances where the cellular phone only supportscircuit-switched voice communications), the ENUM system 530 can respondwith an unsuccessful address resolution which can cause the originatingS-CSCF 506 to forward the call to the MGCF 520 via a Breakout GatewayControl Function (BGCF) 519. The MGCF 520 can then initiate the call tothe terminating PSTN CD over the PSTN network 560 to enable the callingand called parties to engage in voice and/or data communications.

It is further appreciated that the CDs of FIG. 5 can operate as wirelineor wireless devices. For example, the CDs of FIG. 5 can becommunicatively coupled to a cellular base station 521, a femtocell, aWiFi router, a Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT) baseunit, or another suitable wireless access unit to establishcommunications with the IMS network 550 of FIG. 5. The cellular accessbase station 521 can operate according to common wireless accessprotocols such as GSM, CDMA, TDMA, UMTS, WiMax, SDR, LTE, and so on.Other present and next generation wireless network technologies can beused by one or more embodiments of the subject disclosure. Accordingly,multiple wireline and wireless communication technologies can be used bythe CDs of FIG. 5.

Cellular phones supporting LTE can support packet-switched voice andpacket-switched data communications and thus may operate asIMS-compliant mobile devices. In this embodiment, the cellular basestation 521 may communicate directly with the IMS network 550 as shownby the arrow connecting the cellular base station 521 and the P-CSCF516.

Alternative forms of a CSCF can operate in a device, system, component,or other form of centralized or distributed hardware and/or software.Indeed, a respective CSCF may be embodied as a respective CSCF systemhaving one or more computers or servers, either centralized ordistributed, where each computer or server may be configured to performor provide, in whole or in part, any method, step, or functionalitydescribed herein in accordance with a respective CSCF. Likewise, otherfunctions, servers and computers described herein, including but notlimited to, the HSS, the ENUM server, the BGCF, and the MGCF, can beembodied in a respective system having one or more computers or servers,either centralized or distributed, where each computer or server may beconfigured to perform or provide, in whole or in part, any method, step,or functionality described herein in accordance with a respectivefunction, server, or computer.

The server 430 of FIG. 4 can be operably coupled to communication system500 for purposes similar to those described above. Server 430 canperform function 462 and thereby provide services to the remote app ofFIG. 1 in accordance with methods 200 and 300 of FIGS. 2-3. CDs 501,502, 503 and 505, which can be adapted with software to perform function572 to utilize the services of the widget 430 similar to the functionsdescribed for device 116 of FIG. 1 in accordance with methods 200 and300 of FIGS. 2-3. Server 430 can be an integral part of the applicationserver(s) 517 performing function 574, which can be substantiallysimilar to function 462 and adapted to the operations of the IMS network550.

For illustration purposes only, the terms S-CSCF, P-CSCF, I-CSCF, and soon, can be server devices, but may be referred to in the subjectdisclosure without the word “server.” It is also understood that anyform of a CSCF server can operate in a device, system, component, orother form of centralized or distributed hardware and software. It isfurther noted that these terms and other terms such as DIAMETER commandsare terms can include features, methodologies, and/or fields that may bedescribed in whole or in part by standards bodies such as 3^(rd)Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). It is further noted that some orall embodiments of the subject disclosure may in whole or in partmodify, supplement, or otherwise supersede final or proposed standardspublished and promulgated by 3GPP.

FIG. 6 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a web portal 602 of acommunication system 600. Communication system 600 can be overlaid oroperably coupled with system 100 of FIG. 1, communication system 400,and/or communication system 500 as another representative embodiment ofsystem 100 of FIG. 1, communication system 400, and/or communicationsystem 500. The web portal 602 can be used for managing services ofsystem 100 of FIG. 1 and communication systems 400-500. A web page ofthe web portal 602 can be accessed by a Uniform Resource Locator (URL)with an Internet browser using an Internet-capable communication devicesuch as those described in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 4-5. The web portal 602 canbe configured, for example, to access a media processor 406 and servicesmanaged thereby such as a Digital Video Recorder (DVR), a Video onDemand (VoD) catalog, an Electronic Programming Guide (EPG), or apersonal catalog (such as personal videos, pictures, audio recordings,etc.) stored at the media processor 406. The web portal 602 can also beused for provisioning IMS services described earlier, provisioningInternet services, provisioning cellular phone services, and so on.

The web portal 602 can further be utilized to manage and provisionsoftware applications 462, 466, and 572-574 to adapt these applicationsas may be desired by subscribers and/or service providers of system 100of FIG. 1, and communication systems 400-500. For instance, users of theservices provided by server 130 or server 430 can log into their on-lineaccounts and provision the servers 130 or server 430 with remote apps orlocal apps for downloading by device 116, and associated metadata, andso on. Service providers can log onto an administrator account toprovision, monitor and/or maintain the system 100 of FIG. 1 or server430.

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication device 700.Communication device 700 can serve in whole or in part as anillustrative embodiment of the devices depicted in FIG. 1, and FIGS. 4-5and can be configured to perform portions of methods 200 of FIG. 2 and300 of FIG. 3.

Communication device 700 can comprise a wireline and/or wirelesstransceiver 702 (herein transceiver 702), a user interface (UI) 704, apower supply 714, a location receiver 716, a motion sensor 718, anorientation sensor 720, and a controller 706 for managing operationsthereof. The transceiver 702 can support short-range or long-rangewireless access technologies such as Bluetooth®, ZigBee®, WiFi, DECT, orcellular communication technologies, just to mention a few (Bluetooth®and ZigBee® are trademarks registered by the Bluetooth® Special InterestGroup and the ZigBee® Alliance, respectively). Cellular technologies caninclude, for example, CDMA-1×, UMTS/HSDPA, GSM/GPRS, TDMA/EDGE, EV/DO,WiMAX, SDR, LTE, as well as other next generation wireless communicationtechnologies as they arise. The transceiver 702 can also be adapted tosupport circuit-switched wireline access technologies (such as PSTN),packet-switched wireline access technologies (such as TCP/IP, VoIP,etc.), and combinations thereof.

The UI 704 can include a depressible or touch-sensitive keypad 708 witha navigation mechanism such as a roller ball, a joystick, a mouse, or anavigation disk for manipulating operations of the communication device700. The keypad 708 can be an integral part of a housing assembly of thecommunication device 700 or an independent device operably coupledthereto by a tethered wireline interface (such as a USB cable) or awireless interface supporting for example Bluetooth®. The keypad 708 canrepresent a numeric keypad commonly used by phones, and/or a QWERTYkeypad with alphanumeric keys. The UI 704 can further include a display710 such as monochrome or color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED(Organic Light Emitting Diode) or other suitable display technology forconveying images to an end user of the communication device 700. In anembodiment where the display 710 is touch-sensitive, a portion or all ofthe keypad 708 can be presented by way of the display 710 withnavigation features.

The display 710 can use touch screen technology to also serve as a userinterface for detecting user input. As a touch screen display, thecommunication device 700 can be adapted to present a user interface withgraphical user interface (GUI) elements that can be selected by a userwith a touch of a finger. The touch screen display 710 can be equippedwith capacitive, resistive or other forms of sensing technology todetect how much surface area of a user's finger has been placed on aportion of the touch screen display. This sensing information can beused to control the manipulation of the GUI elements or other functionsof the user interface. The display 710 can be an integral part of thehousing assembly of the communication device 700 or an independentdevice communicatively coupled thereto by a tethered wireline interface(such as a cable) or a wireless interface.

The UI 704 can also include an audio system 712 that utilizes audiotechnology for conveying low volume audio (such as audio heard inproximity of a human ear) and high volume audio (such as speakerphonefor hands free operation). The audio system 712 can further include amicrophone for receiving audible signals of an end user. The audiosystem 712 can also be used for voice recognition applications. The UI704 can further include an image sensor 713 such as a charged coupleddevice (CCD) camera for capturing still or moving images.

The power supply 714 can utilize common power management technologiessuch as replaceable and rechargeable batteries, supply regulationtechnologies, and/or charging system technologies for supplying energyto the components of the communication device 700 to facilitatelong-range or short-range portable applications. Alternatively, or incombination, the charging system can utilize external power sources suchas DC power supplied over a physical interface such as a USB port orother suitable tethering technologies.

The location receiver 716 can utilize location technology such as aglobal positioning system (GPS) receiver capable of assisted GPS foridentifying a location of the communication device 700 based on signalsgenerated by a constellation of GPS satellites, which can be used forfacilitating location services such as navigation. The motion sensor 718can utilize motion sensing technology such as an accelerometer, agyroscope, or other suitable motion sensing technology to detect motionof the communication device 700 in three-dimensional space. Theorientation sensor 720 can utilize orientation sensing technology suchas a magnetometer to detect the orientation of the communication device700 (north, south, west, and east, as well as combined orientations indegrees, minutes, or other suitable orientation metrics).

The communication device 700 can use the transceiver 702 to alsodetermine a proximity to a cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth®, or other wirelessaccess points by sensing techniques such as utilizing a received signalstrength indicator (RSSI) and/or signal time of arrival (TOA) or time offlight (TOF) measurements. The controller 706 can utilize computingtechnologies such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP),programmable gate arrays, application specific integrated circuits,and/or a video processor with associated storage memory such as Flash,ROM, RAM, SRAM, DRAM or other storage technologies for executingcomputer instructions, controlling, and processing data supplied by theaforementioned components of the communication device 700.

Other components not shown in FIG. 7 can be used in one or moreembodiments of the subject disclosure. For instance, the communicationdevice 700 can include a reset button (not shown). The reset button canbe used to reset the controller 706 of the communication device 700. Inyet another embodiment, the communication device 700 can also include afactory default setting button positioned, for example, below a smallhole in a housing assembly of the communication device 700 to force thecommunication device 700 to re-establish factory settings. In thisembodiment, a user can use a protruding object such as a pen or paperclip tip to reach into the hole and depress the default setting button.The communication device 700 can also include a slot for adding orremoving an identity module such as a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM)card. SIM cards can be used for identifying subscriber services,executing programs, storing subscriber data, and so forth.

The communication device 700 as described herein can operate with moreor less of the circuit components shown in FIG. 7. These variantembodiments can be used in one or more embodiments of the subjectdisclosure.

The communication device 700 can be adapted to perform the functions ofthe remote server and/or the device of FIG. 1, the media processor 406,the media devices 408, or the portable communication devices 416 of FIG.4, as well as the IMS CDs 501-502 and PSTN CDs 503-505 of FIG. 5. Itwill be appreciated that the communication device 700 can also representother devices that can operate in the system of FIG. 1, communicationsystems 400-500 of FIGS. 4-5 such as a gaming console and a mediaplayer. In addition, the controller 706 can be adapted in variousembodiments to perform the functions 462, 466 and 572-574, respectively.

Upon reviewing the aforementioned embodiments, it would be evident to anartisan with ordinary skill in the art that said embodiments can bemodified, reduced, or enhanced without departing from the scope of theclaims described below. For example, the determination of whether toexecute a remote app or a local app can be performed wholly by thedevice running the local or remote app, by a remote server, or by both.

In another embodiment, the determination whether to run a remote app ora local app may be made by the device processor executing code stored inthe firmware of a mobile device. Metadata describing the remote app canalso influence whether a thin client version or a thick client versionof the remote app is chosen for execution. The metadata includes aspectsof each version of the application, including the amount of memoryneeded to store data and memory to store application code for eachversion, the anticipated mobile device processor utilization for eachversion, a measure of interactivity with the application (e.g.,frequency of user inputs), and the rate of data transmission/receptionbetween the thin client and the remote server. Current operatingconditions of the mobile device include percentage of free memoryavailable, processor utilization, and state of battery charge. Factorsthat could affect the operation of a thin client include the state ofwireless connections, such as cellular mobile network connections, Wi-Ficonnections, or Bluetooth connections, including signal strength,latency, and error rate(s) of wireless connections, and anticipatedenergy requirements during operation of the thin client based on thestate of wireless connections. Regarding signal strength, for example, astrong wireless connection could imply that the mobile device cancommunicate wirelessly with very low power consumption. In contrast, amobile network connection at very low signal strength implies the mobiledevice must transmit a lot of RF power to communicate with the remoteserver running a cloud based application that supports the thin clientversion. The decision whether to employ a thin client would be based onthe power consumption given the state of the wireless connection, andthe current charge state of the mobile device battery. The frequency ofuser interaction associated with the application, and ultimately theamount of data exchanged between mobile device and the remote server,would influence the tolerance for latency in the wireless connection.Similarly, the error rate would influence the decision based on theapplication's tolerance for error in the communication path.

In another embodiment, the determination whether to run a remote app ora local app may be made after a local app or remote app is executing. Ifsuch determination results in choosing a remote app, the local app mayswitch to a remote app dynamically, or vice-versa. Ideally for certainapplications that may lend themselves to parallel processing algorithms,the firmware may adjust the operation of the thin client dynamically, bychanging the amount of data stored and processing that is performedremotely, and the amount of data stored and processing that is performlocally. The adjustment may be based on changes in the status of thewireless connection. The adjustment may also be based on the operatingcondition of the mobile device, such as remaining free memory, processorutilization percentage, or remaining battery charge. The adjustment mayalso be based on the operating condition of the remote server. Otherembodiments can be used in the subject disclosure.

It should be understood that devices described in the exemplaryembodiments can be in communication with each other via various wirelessand/or wired methodologies. The methodologies can be links that aredescribed as coupled, connected and so forth, which can includeunidirectional and/or bidirectional communication over wireless pathsand/or wired paths that utilize one or more of various protocols ormethodologies, where the coupling and/or connection can be direct (e.g.,no intervening processing device) and/or indirect (e.g., an intermediaryprocessing device such as a router).

In an embodiment, the device launching the app may be a stationary, butbattery operated device, and may have a wired network connection insteadof a wireless network connection. For such wired connection, latency maystill be a factor influencing which app to run, but signal strengthshould not be a factor. In an embodiment, a variety of networkconnections may be evaluated to determine whether to run the remote appor the local app.

FIG. 8 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine inthe form of a computer system 800 within which a set of instructions,when executed, may cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethods described above. One or more instances of the machine canoperate, for example, as the server 430, the media processor 406, or theremote server 130 and other devices of FIGS. 1 and 4-7. In someembodiments, the machine may be connected (e.g., using a network 826) toother machines. In a networked deployment, the machine may operate inthe capacity of a server or a client user machine in a server-clientuser network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (ordistributed) network environment.

The machine may comprise a server computer, a client user computer, apersonal computer (PC), a tablet, a smart phone, a laptop computer, adesktop computer, a control system, a network router, switch or bridge,or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential orotherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. It will beunderstood that a communication device of the subject disclosureincludes broadly any electronic device that provides voice, video ordata communication. Further, while a single machine is illustrated, theterm “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machinesthat individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) ofinstructions to perform any one or more of the methods discussed herein.

The computer system 800 may include a processor (or controller) 802(e.g., a central processing unit (CPU)), a graphics processing unit(GPU, or both), a main memory 804 and a static memory 806, whichcommunicate with each other via a bus 808. The computer system 800 mayfurther include a display unit 810 (e.g., a liquid crystal display(LCD), a flat panel, or a solid state display). The computer system 800may include an input device 812 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor controldevice 814 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 816, a signal generationdevice 818 (e.g., a speaker or remote control) and a network interfacedevice 820. In distributed environments, the embodiments described inthe subject disclosure can be adapted to utilize multiple display units810 controlled by two or more computer systems 800. In thisconfiguration, presentations described by the subject disclosure may inpart be shown in a first of the display units 810, while the remainingportion is presented in a second of the display units 810.

The disk drive unit 816 may include a tangible computer-readable storagemedium 822 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g.,software 824) embodying any one or more of the methods or functionsdescribed herein, including those methods illustrated above. Theinstructions 824 may also reside, completely or at least partially,within the main memory 804, the static memory 806, and/or within theprocessor 802 during execution thereof by the computer system 800. Themain memory 804 and the processor 802 also may constitute tangiblecomputer-readable storage media.

Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to,application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays andother hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement themethods described herein. Application specific integrated circuits andprogrammable logic array can use downloadable instructions for executingstate machines and/or circuit configurations to implement embodiments ofthe subject disclosure. Applications that may include the apparatus andsystems of various embodiments broadly include a variety of electronicand computer systems. Some embodiments implement functions in two ormore specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with relatedcontrol and data signals communicated between and through the modules,or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Thus, theexample system is applicable to software, firmware, and hardwareimplementations.

In accordance with various embodiments of the subject disclosure, theoperations or methods described herein are intended for operation assoftware programs or instructions running on or executed by a computerprocessor or other computing device, and which may include other formsof instructions manifested as a state machine implemented with logiccomponents in an application specific integrated circuit or fieldprogrammable gate array. Furthermore, software implementations (e.g.,software programs, instructions, etc.) including, but not limited to,distributed processing or component/object distributed processing,parallel processing, or virtual machine processing can also beconstructed to implement the methods described herein. Distributedprocessing environments can include multiple processors in a singlemachine, single processors in multiple machines, and/or multipleprocessors in multiple machines. It is further noted that a computingdevice such as a processor, a controller, a state machine or othersuitable device for executing instructions to perform operations ormethods may perform such operations directly or indirectly by way of oneor more intermediate devices directed by the computing device.

While the tangible computer-readable storage medium 822 is shown in anexample embodiment to be a single medium, the term “tangiblecomputer-readable storage medium” should be taken to include a singlemedium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database,and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets ofinstructions. The term “tangible computer-readable storage medium” shallalso be taken to include any non-transitory medium that is capable ofstoring or encoding a set of instructions for execution by the machineand that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methods ofthe subject disclosure. The term “non-transitory” as in a non-transitorycomputer-readable storage includes without limitation memories, drives,devices and anything tangible but not a signal per se.

The term “tangible computer-readable storage medium” shall accordinglybe taken to include, but not be limited to: solid-state memories such asa memory card or other package that houses one or more read-only(non-volatile) memories, random access memories, or other re-writable(volatile) memories, a magneto-optical or optical medium such as a diskor tape, or other tangible media which can be used to store information.Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more ofa tangible computer-readable storage medium, as listed herein andincluding art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which thesoftware implementations herein are stored.

Although the present specification describes components and functionsimplemented in the embodiments with reference to particular standardsand protocols, the disclosure is not limited to such standards andprotocols. Each of the standards for Internet and other packet switchednetwork transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, and HTTP) representexamples of the state of the art. Such standards are from time-to-timesuperseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentiallythe same functions. Wireless standards for device detection (e.g.,RFID), short-range communications (e.g., Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi, ZigBee®),and long-range communications (e.g., WiMAX, GSM, CDMA, LTE) can be usedby computer system 800. In one or more embodiments, informationregarding use of services can be generated including services beingaccessed, media consumption history, user preferences, and so forth.This information can be obtained by various methods including userinput, detecting types of communications (e.g., video content vs. audiocontent), analysis of content streams, and so forth. The generating,obtaining and/or monitoring of this information can be responsive to anauthorization provided by the user.

The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended toprovide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments,and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all theelements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use ofthe structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparentto those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Theexemplary embodiments can include combinations of features and/or stepsfrom multiple embodiments. Other embodiments may be utilized and derivedtherefrom, such that structural and logical substitutions and changesmay be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Figuresare also merely representational and may not be drawn to scale. Certainproportions thereof may be exaggerated, while others may be minimized.Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in anillustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement which achieves thesame or similar purpose may be substituted for the embodiments describedor shown by the subject disclosure. The subject disclosure is intendedto cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, can be used in the subject disclosure.For instance, one or more features from one or more embodiments can becombined with one or more features of one or more other embodiments. Inone or more embodiments, features that are positively recited can alsobe negatively recited and excluded from the embodiment with or withoutreplacement by another structural and/or functional feature. The stepsor functions described with respect to the embodiments of the subjectdisclosure can be performed in any order. The steps or functionsdescribed with respect to the embodiments of the subject disclosure canbe performed alone or in combination with other steps or functions ofthe subject disclosure, as well as from other embodiments or from othersteps that have not been described in the subject disclosure. Further,more than or less than all of the features described with respect to anembodiment can also be utilized.

Less than all of the steps or functions described with respect to theexemplary processes or methods can also be performed in one or more ofthe exemplary embodiments. Further, the use of numerical terms todescribe a device, component, step or function, such as first, second,third, and so forth, is not intended to describe an order or functionunless expressly stated so. The use of the terms first, second, thirdand so forth, is generally to distinguish between devices, components,steps or functions unless expressly stated otherwise. Additionally, oneor more devices or components described with respect to the exemplaryembodiments can facilitate one or more functions, where the facilitating(e.g., facilitating access or facilitating establishing a connection)can include less than every step needed to perform the function or caninclude all of the steps needed to perform the function.

In one or more embodiments, a processor (which can include a controlleror circuit) has been described that performs various functions. Itshould be understood that the processor can be multiple processors,which can include distributed processors or parallel processors in asingle machine or multiple machines. The processor can be used insupporting a virtual processing environment. The virtual processingenvironment may support one or more virtual machines representingcomputers, servers, or other computing devices. In such virtualmachines, components such as microprocessors and storage devices may bevirtualized or logically represented. The processor can include a statemachine, application specific integrated circuit, and/or programmablegate array including a Field PGA. In one or more embodiments, when aprocessor executes instructions to perform “operations”, this caninclude the processor performing the operations directly and/orfacilitating, directing, or cooperating with another device or componentto perform the operations.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided with the understanding thatit will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of theclaims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can beseen that various features are grouped together in a single embodimentfor the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method ofdisclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that theclaimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited ineach claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subjectmatter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment.Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the DetailedDescription, with each claim standing on its own as a separately claimedsubject matter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A mobile device, comprising: a processing systemincluding a processor; and a memory that stores executable instructionsthat, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance ofoperations, the operations comprising: receiving a conversion factorfrom a remote server that provides services to support execution of aremote application; determining power requirements according to a dataconnection with the remote server, wherein the remote applicationcorresponds to a local application that executes on the mobile device;comparing the power requirements to a remaining charge of a battery ofthe mobile device to obtain a comparison; and executing the remoteapplication, in lieu of the local application that executes on themobile device, according to the comparison, wherein the determining ofthe power requirements further comprises determining a signal strengthof a wireless signal and applying the conversion factor to convert thesignal strength to an expected power requirement.
 2. The mobile deviceof claim 1, wherein the wireless signal is adapted for use in a Wi-Ficonnection.
 3. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the operationsfurther comprise: calculating an expected rate of battery dischargebased on metadata obtained via the data connection.
 4. The mobile deviceof claim 3, wherein the expected rate of battery discharge isproportional to a rate of data transmission and inversely proportionalto signal strength.
 5. The mobile device of claim 4, wherein thecomparing of the power requirements to the remaining charge furthercomprises determining whether a percentage of battery charge divided bythe expected rate of battery discharge is greater than a secondthreshold value.
 6. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the processingsystem comprises a mobile processor, and wherein the local applicationexecutes on the mobile device without requiring computational resourcesof the remote server.
 7. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein theoperations further comprise: obtaining metadata according to the dataconnection with the remote server, wherein the determining of the powerrequirements is based on the metadata.
 8. A non-transitory,machine-readable medium, comprising executable instructions that, whenexecuted by a processing system including a processor of a mobile devicecomprising memory, facilitate performance of operations, the operationscomprising: receiving a conversion factor from a remote server thatprovides services to support execution of a remote application;determining power requirements according to a data connection with theremote server that provides services to support execution of the remoteapplication, wherein the remote application corresponds to a localapplication that executes on the mobile device; comparing the powerrequirements to a remaining charge of a battery of the mobile device toobtain a comparison; and executing the remote application, in lieu ofthe local application that executes on the mobile device, according tothe comparison, wherein the determining of the power requirementsfurther comprises determining a signal strength of a wireless signal andapplying the conversion factor to convert the signal strength to anexpected power requirement.
 9. The non-transitory, machine-readablemedium of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise determiningwhether power requirements for the data connection exceeds a remainingcharge of a battery.
 10. The non-transitory, machine-readable medium ofclaim 9, wherein the operations further comprise executing the localapplication responsive to not executing the remote application.
 11. Thenon-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 8, wherein theoperations further comprise: calculating an expected rate of batterydischarge based on metadata obtained via the data connection, wherein anexpected rate of battery discharge is proportional to a rate of datatransmission and inversely proportional to signal strength.
 12. Thenon-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 11, wherein thecomparing of the power requirements to the remaining charge furthercomprises determining whether a percentage of battery charge divided bythe expected rate of battery discharge is greater than a thresholdvalue.
 13. A method, comprising: receiving, by a processing system thatincludes a processor of a mobile device, a conversion factor from aremote server that provides services to support execution of a remoteapplication; determining, by the processing system, power requirementsaccording to a data connection with the remote server that providesservices to support execution of the remote application, wherein theremote application corresponds to a local application that executes onthe mobile device; comparing, by the processing system, the powerrequirements to a remaining charge of a battery of the mobile device toobtain a comparison; and executing, by the processing system, the remoteapplication, in lieu of the local application that executes on themobile device, according to the comparison, wherein the determining ofthe power requirements further comprises determining a signal strengthof a wireless signal and applying the conversion factor to convert thesignal strength to an expected power requirement.
 14. The method ofclaim 13, wherein the power requirements depend upon a type of dataconnection.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the type of dataconnection comprises a Wi-Fi connection, a Bluetooth connection, a WANconnection, a mobile communication network data connection.
 16. Themethod of claim 13, wherein executing the remote application is furtherresponsive to a priority of the remote application compared to apriority of other applications executing on the mobile device.
 17. Themobile device of claim 3, wherein the executing of the remoteapplication in lieu of the local application is responsive to theexpected power requirement being within the remaining charge of thebattery.
 18. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein executing the remoteapplication is further responsive to a priority of the remoteapplication compared to a priority of other applications executing onthe mobile device.
 19. The non-transitory, machine-readable medium ofclaim 9, wherein executing the remote application is responsive to thepower requirements for the data connection being less than the remainingcharge of the battery.
 20. The non-transitory, machine-readable mediumof claim 8, wherein executing the remote application is furtherresponsive to a priority of the remote application compared to apriority of other applications executing on the mobile device.